The Importance Of Meaningful Appropriation

In today’s society, we are constantly being bombarded with visual art forms. Whether they be classical paintings from the Renaissance, a towering and modern skyscraper, or even a cheesy 90’s R&B music video, they all have one thing in common. According to Carolyn Dean’s definition, these would all fall under the category of “art by intention.” In her essay “The Trouble with (The Term) Art” she advocates a distinction between art by intention and what she deems “art by appropriation.” The difference is that one work was created with the intention of being consumed for visual pleasure, while the other was not. However having been educated in the Western school of thought, many art historians cannot help but project their rigid definition of art onto civilizations that may have

or the other is not looked upon as politically incorrect or wrong-minded. However, it allows

Contemporary art has a long history of appropriating material into new work such as Duchamp’s ready-mades where he recontexualizes found source material, the photo collages of Hannah Hoch and today’s remix culture. In Remixthebook, Mark Amerika (2011) argues that in Postproduction art, “the artist takes what has already been produced in culture and, through creative postproduction means, expresses a new cultural configuration that both speaks to contemporary culture as well as the source material that has been remixed”. Traditional crafts such as patchwork and quilt making have also contained ideas of transformation of old collected materials into new forms. By the frugally collecting and repurposing of these waste materials, Gower critiques

In general appropriation in the art movement of postmodernism, borrows, copies, and alters preexisting images and objects to challenge traditional notions in art. In artist Kehinde Wiley newest art exhibit, “Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic,” he appropriate cultural images, and characters from one context and places them it in another. Using juxtaposed inversions to challenge traditional elitist, white male-dominated, “high” historical art culture. As a self-identified homosexual African American man raised in Los Angeles in the 80’s, it is evident a significant part of Kehinde Wiley artists inventions derive from his own personal experiences and beliefs. By appropriate white

In Western culture, people seldom realize the amount of cultural appropriation that occurs around them. Westerners are blinded by cultural mockery and cultural appropriation without realizing its offensive effects to minority groups. During the Halloween holiday, in Western culture, people of all ages dress up in a variety of costumes such as horror themed, fairy tale themed, job themed, cultural themed and much more. Harvard University members have argued that a cultural themed costume is a form of cultural appropriation. Also in Western culture, in the music industry, white artists have utilized and exploited aspects from minority cultures to boost their fame. Costumes, props, ideas, music, and others considered as cultural appropriation is often overlooked but it is apparent when closely examined.

At a birthday party there is an African American boy wearing a sombrero while hitting a piñata. Down the street, there is a Russian girl who dances with a Japanese fan that her neighbor gifted. These two children, according to the current media, are displaying cultural appropriation. In America, citizens have the rarity of experiencing what many call the “Melting Pot” of different cultures and ethnicities. To many other countries, the different cultural exposures are not of such a common privilege. Cultural appropriation is what sets us back from connecting to other cultures around the world. I understand that it may bring misunderstanding of what certain clothing items and practices really mean respect and value wise. However, demonstrating

It was not until recently I realized that cultural appropriation was such a contentious issue... Supported by the downy soft pillows and enclosed by the thick wool of my comforter, I lay in the company of the hazy cold blue light given off by my phone. After a long day of school and homework, it was certain that the best way to unwind was endlessly getting lost in the depths of Instagram. The cold blue light reflects the shadow of my confused stricken face. Images of people with oversized and wry lips flood my screen. Their swollen and bruised mouths contest their horrified expressions. In the comment section reads, “Kylie Jenner lip challenge”.

In what is clearly a case of art imitating the reality of imitation, local Chicago area artist 'RiverCat, Inc' has created what some are calling a counterculture masterwork of criticism. The only thing known about this installation is that social media was his main inspiration

A massive artistic change begins with a sense of something about this is wrong. The next step is anger against the wrong and a decision to rectify it. Later, the anger and need for change bleed into every artistic form to revolutionize culture itself. There is no better example of a counter-culture movement than America in the 1960’s, as defiance of previous social norms took place in the Civil Rights movement, the beginning of feminism, and the construction of a radical “hippie” lifestyle. Through cultural changes came rapid controversial evolution in the arts, particularly in music and fashion.

Ron Mueck is a hyper realistic artist whose main focus is on rendering the human experience through the sculpture of people. Mueck stirs emotion with his sculptures and make people really think about the human body in a new way. In contrast to Mueck’s emotional and heavy artworks; Alexander McQueen, a British fashion designer focused on hiding the human experience with clothing, that often pushed the boundaries on what we traditionally think of as fashion is the opposite. McQueen’s fashions and works of art are definitely pieces that make a statement and push the boundaries. He got his inspiration from film, music, and everywhere he could find it. These two artists are both concerned with the human body and how to create a sense of awe with their individual and different audiences. The audiences of the two artists are dramatically different. McQueen’s audience is those in the fashion world, while Meuck’s audience are those in the art world.

Cultural appropriation is something that has plagued America’s Black community for as long as it has been here. Cultural appropriation is taking aspects of another culture and using them disrespectfully or without credit to the original culture. This has happened to Black people since they were brought to America as slaves and still occurs today. From hairstyles to music white Americans have used Black culture as a basis for their own fashion and benefited off of it. This is an issue because as their culture is appropriated and sold back to them Black people are shown that their culture is not anything of value, that these things only matter or are profitable when done by white people. Cultural appropriation includes intangible things as

Another example artist is Kristy Whitlock; a textile artist based in Hampshire, UK who produces limited edition and one-off textile artworks. Her tactile, graphic, and powerful embroidery has become her signature along with upeycling discarded household items for her canvases. While using traditional techniques of stitching, her work brings into question our modern day hunger for mixing imagery and message, akin to Internet memes and Creative Commons remixing. Kristy uses her experimental embroidery to explore how textiles can be concerned with and comment on contemporary issues and affairs. In a world that is increasingly filled with altered and derivative works, Kristy makes topical statements with her visual mash-ups of current affairs, embroidery, and the paper ephemera of modern consumer life. Holmes (2015) wrote and interviewed Kristy Whitlock in ‘Stitch Stories book’; in Kristy Whitlock statement, she has said that your work “ pushes the boundaries of embroidery

In the end, there is clear evidence that cultural appropriation is still a prominent part of modern society. From celebrities, social media accounts, to the target audience, to mixing up cultures one thing clearly stands: if you take a specific traditional or religious item out of it’s intended context and use, it is appropriation. In the words of Amandla Stenberg, “appropriation occurs when a style leads to racist generalizations or stereotypes from where they are originated but is deemed as high fashion, cool, or funny when the privilege take it for themselves. Appropriation occurs when the appropriators are not aware of the deep significance of the culture they are partaking

‘Copying, reinterpreting, quoting, and translating are all terms that have been utilised as alternative descriptions for the phenomenon known as “appropriation”, the action of taking or making use of something without authority or legal right. This practice often involves borrowing, mimicking, or even stealing, and it is highly contested and criticized in the contemporary art world’ (Gorman, C 2013, p. 215). Appropriation in the postmodern decade brings various aspects such as cultural exchange and finding identity. From the number of contemporary artists used the appropriation in their artwork covers a wide range of media. Appropriation art, sometimes cause responses varying from astonishment and suspicion to praise and acceptance, depend

Relevancy for target audiences is a large aspect of marketing to maintain interest within the target market. However, ethical and moral considerations need to be understood when using aspects of other cultures, especially when re-selling and mass marketing ideas that emerge organically within society (mainly minorities). Ethics can mean many different things, so in this essay there will be a general focus on cultural appropriation including basic information on why it is wrong and a comparison of cultural appreciation. Conversations about cultural appropriation can be brought about in so many different ways that it can be hard to separate information. Therefore this essay will argue that cultural appropriation is not inevitable and not ethical, and will mainly contain information about; companies that use cultural appropriation for profit, cultural appropriation in media, and the general ethics of cultural appropriation. Please note that the topics discussed will be done so in a very brief form, compared to the information that can be found on this topic.